Many packaging applications use resealable containers to store various types of articles and materials. These packages may be used to store and ship food products, non-food consumer goods, medical supplies, waste materials, and many other articles. Resealable packages are convenient in that they can be closed and resealed after the initial opening to preserve the enclosed contents. The need to locate a storage container for the unused portion of the products in the package is thus avoided. As such. providing products in resealable packages appreciably enhances the marketability of those products.
Some types of resealable packages are opened and closed using a slider device. The slider device typically includes a separator or plow-type structure at one end that opens a closure mechanism, having profiled elements or closure profiles, when the slider device travels in a first direction along the mechanism. The sidewalls of the slider device are inwardly tapered from one end to the opposite end so that the sidewalls engage the closure profiles and progressively move them into engagement to close the resealable package when the slider device is moved along the closure mechanism in a direction opposite the first direction.
Concerns are raised regarding resealable closure mechanisms with slider devices. One such concern is attachment of the slider device to the package. For example, rigid slider devices can be difficult to attach to the package, and multiple piece slider devices require additional manufacturing steps. Not only do both of these alternatives involve additional costs, but they also result in lower manufacturing rates. Improvements are desirable.